Kitty Sections New Keyboardist
by CaptainMalcolmReynolds
Summary: No Powers AU. Kitty Section gets a new keyboard player, and Marinette is intrigued. Too bad she's got her hands all over another guy when they're introduced...
1. Marinette goes to a concert

_This was a story based on the very first prompt back in Marichat May. I've added to it, so it gets it's own story!_

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Marinette Dupain-Cheng loved music. She loved the rhythms, she loved the melodies, she loved how music made her feel. She loved going to concerts, feeling other bodies moving in time to the music, their hearts all beating together. So when her friend Rose invited the class to a concert where the opening group was her band, Kitty Section, Marinette jumped at the chance. She had, after all, designed their costumes. Well… most of their costumes. The majority of the band had colorful costumes, Rose, Ivan and Luka wore unicorn masks, while Juleka wore a cat mask. The fifth member of the band was someone she had never met, but he refused to have his costume "made by an amateur". In fact, the only thing that she knew about him was that he played keyboard, and only wore black.

Shaking off any lingering bad feelings about the band's keyboard player, she was digging through her closet when there was a knock at her trap door. Calling out a "come in" that was barely out of her mouth before the door opened, and her best friend, Alya Cesaire barreled in, a dress over one shoulder, and her overnight bag over the other. "Marinette! What are you going to wear? Have you decided yet? You should wear that one you made. The one with the polka dots!"

Laughing, Marinette held out the dress she'd been considering, a knee length 50's style dress that was red with black polka dots. "This one?"

Alya's eyes grew wide. "Girl, I haven't even seen that one! I meant the pink one, but you should definitely wear this dress!"

"Well, you said 'the one I made'. I made all of these" She gestured around the room, "So that part doesn't really narrow it down. I just finished this one last weekend, and haven't had the chance to wear it yet!"

"You should definitely wear it! Luka's going to love it!" Alya enthused.

It was no secret that Alya was trying to set Marinette up with the older boy. Ever since she and Nino had started dating, Alya had made it her goal to find her best friend the same kind of happiness. While Marinette had never been interested in dating any of the boys that Alya was pushing her towards, she definitely had some kind of connection with Luka. "Alya", she sighed. "Luka and I are just friends. Please stop pushing us together."

"Fine, girl, whatever, go put on your dress, Little Miss Ladybug."

As Marinette put on her dress, Alya also changed into a dark orange dress with white accents. As the girls were finishing up their makeup, another knock came of the trap door. This time it didn't open until after the call to come in, and Marinette's father, Tom, stood there, with a plate of snacks for the girls. "I didn't want my favorite girls going hungry before the big concert" he said with a smile.

"Thanks Dad!" exclaimed Marinette.

Both girls ate a croissant, and grabbed another to take with them as they shrugged into their jackets, and headed out the door. Walking through the early evening air, they chatted about their friends, and how excited they were to see the concert. Alya ran a blog about local bands, and was telling Marinette about the keyboard player for Kitty Section.

"He's kind of a mystery. Nobody knows much about him… even his name. He goes by the stage name of Chat Noir, and won't answer to anything else. Lots of people have tried guessing, but he always keeps his mask on, even during closed rehearsals, so even his bandmates don't know who he is. He's shorter than Luka and Ivan… although most people are shorter than Ivan. Except, maybe, your dad." Alya joked. "A lot of girls think that he's really hot. I mean he's OK, and he does wear skin tight black leather, so if that's your thing…" She trailed off.

Rolling her eyes, Marinette laughed, "Oh yeah. Black leather. Such an original fashion choice!"

Alya bumped her friend's hip with hers. "Trust you to focus on the fashion. Come on. We can check him and his outfit out after the show. Hey! There's Nino!" Waving at her boyfriend, she towed Marinette along towards the entrance to the arena where Kitty Section was opening for Lenni Kim.

"Hey ladies! Glad you guys could make it! We're in the front section, over on the left." Nino guided them to their seats, 3 rows from the front, right in front of where Luka and the new keyboardist, Chat Noir would be standing. The friends chatted while they waited for the band to come out. It wasn't long before Kitty Section was introduced, and the members came out on stage, Ivan at his drum set, Rose at the microphone, The Couffaines on their guitars, and a boy in a black leather suit complete with a belt tail, black mask over his face, and a cat ear headband on his head… that MUST be Chat Noir thought Marinette… at the keyboard.

Nino, Marinette and Alya all cheered their friends loudly, Alya leaning over to compliment Marinette on the brightly colored masks and outfits she had made for four of the band members. As the band started playing, all conversation was rendered impossible, and all that was left was for the friends to dance and sing along. Smiling at her friends onstage, Marinette found her eyes drawn back to the boy behind the keyboard, the mysterious Chat Noir. She studied his outfit… it did appear to be professionally made, and very well done at that. It fit him like a glove, leaving none of his lean musculature to the imagination. What had Marinette entranced, however, was the design of the costume. Her fingers itched to explore the seams and study its construction.

Halfway through the second song, Chat Noir caught her staring at him. His bright green eyes caught her blue ones, and a smirk found its way across his face. He was used to people staring at him, and checking him out, but something felt different about the way she'd been looking at him, more curious than lustful, and he was intrigued. Under the outfit, and the wild persona he took on when he dressed as Chat Noir, he was the model Adrien Agreste, a boy who had never been allowed out on his own, and had almost no friends, especially of his own age. Even his own father didn't know that he had been slipping out of the house, only his friend Alexandre Plagg, his personal designer, who had made him the outfit, knew.

Having been caught staring at Chat Noir's chest (Were those pockets? What on earth could he fit in them?), Marinette blushed bright red, and shifted her gaze away to the other members of the band, but her eyes kept straying back to the boy in black. He caught her a few more times, and she blushed each time.

Once Lenni Kim came out onstage, Marinette left her friends dancing along to Don't Stop, as she made her way back to congratulate the members of Kitty Section. She was swept into an embrace by Rose and Juleka as she squealed to them about what a great performance it was, and how proud she was of them. Over Rose's shoulder, she grinned at Ivan, who grinned back at her and gave her a thumbs up. She was asking the group how their costumes had faired for them, if they were still comfortable after the full set on stage, and if they needed any adjustments as Luka walked in. While the others said that everything was fine, the masks were a little sweaty and rubbed against their foreheads, but they were under some serious spotlights that they were not used to, Luka said that he had the same problem with his chest plate above his shirt. Marinette had one hand on his chest, the other lifting up the front of his costume, checking where it met his t-shirt, when a male voice behind her commented, "Just couldn't wait to put your hands all over a celebrity, could you? Any one was good enough."

Turning the same color as her dress, and jumping back from Luka like he'd burned her, Marinette whipped around to see the source of the harsh words. There stood Chat Noir, leaning against the door frame, annoyance sparking in his eyes. Steel snapped into Marinette's spine as the other band members gaped slightly at their keyboardist's judgement of the situation. Pointedly turning her back on the boy who had first snubbed her handiwork, and now just insulted her, she turned to Luka and said, "You have a couple of options. The simplest would be to wear a shirt with a higher collar like the others do, or I can add some absorbent padding to the top of the plate, so it won't rub as you move your guitar. For right now, take it off, and clean and dry your…" She broke off, touching the base of her throat to indicate the area. "You're a little red, but no skin is broken, so the discomfort should go away pretty quickly." Turning to the others, she added, "Let me take your masks home with me, and I will add some absorbent padding along the forehead and anywhere else it was irritating you, so it will be much more comfortable next time."

Turning back to Chat Noir, she smiled icily and prepared to chastise him for jumping to conclusions. Instead, what came out was, "Your bell… is that a zipper?" Blushing again, she stepped closer, and added, "These seams are fantastic! Leather is so hard to sew. I was noticing earlier that you have pockets, too! That's just amazing! Whomever made this, really knows their craft!" She looked up at him, ice melted and eyes sparkling.

Completely taken aback, and not used to such unabashed enthusiasm, Chat Noir stuttered as he answered, "A f-f-friend of mine who is in the f-f-fashion industry." He rushed to add, "I assume you are the one who m-m-made the costumes for the others? They are f-f-fabulous."

He only thought she had been smiling earlier. When he complimented her work, Marinette's smile turned radiant. It lit up the room, and completely knocked Chat Noir off his feet. He knew at that moment that he would do anything to make her smile like that again.

"Thank you Monsieur Noir. I hope to be a designer one day, and making these costumes for my friends, to get them noticed in that competition that XY held, was so much fun!"

"Marinette is in our class at school," added Rose, indicating herself, Juleka and Ivan. "I bet she even made that dress she is wearing now!"

"It's true, I did." Marinette gave a little twirl, to the appreciative sounds of Rose and Juleka. Ivan gave her another thumbs up and a smile, and Luka added, "You are a very talented girl, Marinette."

Chat Noir's eyes never left Marinette as she talked and joked with her friends. Even after Lenni Kim had left the stage, and Alya and Nino had joined them, along with Mylene and several other of their classmates, Chat's eyes followed her every movement, widening every time she threw her head back to laugh, but never joined in any of their conversations.

Observing his bandmate's reaction to her, Luka, after a furiously whispered conversation with Chat, dragged him over to where Marinette was talking with some of the girls from his sister's class. Introducing them all to Chat, Luka then asked if he could talk with Marinette for a moment. He left Chat awkwardly standing next to Alya, as she pestered him for an interview for her blog. After talking to Marinette, and telling her about how shy their new keyboardist was, she immediately promised to befriend him, and suggested to the whole group that they go out for ice cream the next day as a post-concert celebration.

Many of their classmates had other obligations, and it turned out that the only two that would be able to make it were Marinette and Chat. She smiled at him, and said, "It's a date! I'll see you tomorrow at 11am." He blushed lightly and nodded, his heart already hers.


	2. Adrien joins Kitty Section

It started out as a simple need to get out of the house. To be with other people, even if he didn't get to interact with them. He would wear all black and a mask, the night air caressing his face. The first time that he entered a store, looking to buy something, only to have a conversation with the shopkeeper, another human being, is when he learned that if you wear just a mask into a store, people think you're going to rob it.

After a long conversation with his long-time personal designer and only real friend, Alexandre Plagg, Adrien Agreste decided that instead of a mask to hide his features, it was much more acceptable to walk around in a full costume. Talking to Plagg about what he wanted, something dark to keep him easily hidden, yet whimsical enough that people wouldn't find him frightening, the idea for Chat Noir was born.

A leather suit, fitted to his body, with small pockets that sat just below his ribcage was complimented by a belt that hung low in the back, representing a tail, and an oversized golden bell tucked up under his chin. The black domino mask remained covering his eyes, keeping his identity hidden from fans and family alike with black gloves that covered his long fingers. . The finishing touch was a pair of leather cat ears that bobbed in his carelessly styled blonde locks as they perched atop a headband the same color as his hair. The effect was a slightly goofy cat-boy that oozed charm when Adrien let loose the more flamboyant side of his personality.

The result was a persona, much like the one he donned to become Adrien the Model, only opposite in almost every way. While Adrien Agreste was quiet, shy and calmly put together, his life an open book, documented for the interest of all Paris, Chat Noir was boisterous, outgoing and flirtatious, yet a complete mystery to everyone. He would show up around town, mostly at festivals, concerts and other large gatherings of people where he could be absorbed into the sea of humanity.

A few months into his outings under his new persona, Plagg was working on an outfit for his father's upcoming Designer's Dinner, where he would be forced to mingle with his father's counterparts and basically be treated as a human mannequin, one whose personal attributes as well as the clothes he wore, words he spoke, manners and even education would be critiqued by the notoriously hard to please designers in attendance.

Plagg stepped into Adrien's room so they could have a fitting in private, the design already having been approved, just the fit being fine tuned. From inside his notebook, Plagg pulled out an article, a want ad to be specific, showing an open call to try out for one of the city's more popular new bands, Kitty Section. The band appeared to be in need of a keyboard player, and Plagg knew that Adrien was an accomplished pianist.

"Adrien! You have to look at this! A group is looking for a keyboard player. They've won a couple of local talent shows, and the members look to be your age. I think that this would be a perfect opportunity for you!"

Adrien sighed, and looked sadly at his friend. "Alexandre, have you forgotten. I can escape as Chat Noir every once in a while, but how am I going to be able to sneak out for rehearsals? I would have to spend a lot of time as Chat."

"It doesn't hurt to try out. You can figure out any issues if you are chosen as the keyboard player. You might hate playing with others, but if you don't take the chance, how will you ever know?"

"You're right. I should try it."

Plagg grinned at him and handed him the clipping. "The good news is that I have requested your presence for an inspiration session this Friday, when the tryouts are. Your father doesn't need to know that I'm caught up on your designs for the next several months."

Several years ago when Plagg had realized how tight a leash Adrien was kept on, he had approached Gabriel Agreste about doing "inspiration sessions", where he borrowed the boy and took him out on short trips, whether to the Louvre, the Jardin des Tuileries, or even to a street market, more to get him out and having experiences that children his age should be having. As Adrien got older, they started taking day trips to other towns, swiftly visiting the sights they said they would so that Adrien would not have to lie to his father, but including many things that both knew the older Agreste would not approve of.

"Thank you Alexandre! I really appreciate it!" Clutching the clipping to his chest, Adrien grinned at his friend. "What kind of piece should I play for them? I know they're definitely not a classical style group, but I want to show off what I can do!"

The pair decided on him playing a medley of songs, starting off with a classical piece, and giving it a more metal edge, as well as a jazz piece that showed off his skills nicely.

The day of the tryouts arrived, and Adrien was nervous when Plagg came to pick him up. They took a quick trip to Plagg's apartment so that Adrien could switch to his Chat Noir costume. Plagg followed Adrien to the park where the auditions were taking place. The band appeared to be comprised of two girls and two boys that appeared fairly close to him in age. He smiled behind the mask as he watched the others playing their pieces. From a distance, the keyboard looked familiar, but when it was his turn to play, he approached the instrument and let out a gasp of joy. "Oh man! Is this an original ZX 20.4? I love the sound of this instrument!"

The blue haired boy in front of him smiled and nodded. "Yep. We've been looking for someone who knows this instrument. Show us what you've got." Chat Noir played his prepared songs, losing himself in the music, and only remembering that he had an audience when applause broke out as the final notes faded away.

The four bandmates smiled at him, and continued to hear auditions. Another nerve wracking hour passed, and the blue haired boy addressed everyone. "Thank you for coming! We will discuss this amongst ourselves, and see if there is a clear favorite. If not, we will announce the finalists."

It was barely five minutes later that the young man returned. "We want to thank everyone for coming, you were all fantastic, but by unanimous decision, we would like to invite, uh, Chat Noir to join us."

Adrien was stunned and overjoyed. As he made his way up to the band… his new band… he heard the others muttering, but ignored it, the butterflies in his stomach flapping way to much for him to have any other concerns.

The blue haired boy introduced himself as Luka Couffaine, and a dark haired girl with a purple streak was his sister, Juleka. The adorable blonde girl was Rose Lavillant, and the giant of a drummer was Ivan Bruel.

Adrien gave his name as Chat Noir, and when pressed, refused to share his given name, stating that he was going to be known as Chat Noir and nothing else. Luka looked at his bandmates. They all just shrugged back at him, and that was that, he was in the band.

After the first few months of rehearsals, Chat felt comfortable enough sitting down with Luka and explaining the basics of his situation: that he had to sneak out, and his father would kill him if he found out who Chat was under the mask. Luka was concerned at the risks his new friend was taking, but ultimately understood.

Luka said that they'd been talking with a friend, about making their band costumes, but Adrien pointed out that he already had a costume, and definitely didn't need one made by a College student. Luka looked offended for a moment before he schooled his features and just nodded. "Alright. We are planning on masks and costumes for when we open for Lenni Kim in a few months. Are you sure you don't want Marinette to brighten up your look a bit?"

Adrien shook his head. "I'm happy with what I have. Thank you. I am sure this Marinette is talented for a College student, but I am not interested in wearing anything made by an amateur."

He regretted his words a few weeks later, when he saw the detail in the costumes, and just how well made they were. Each of his bandmates had a mask that completely fit with their personality, and a costume that felt like a natural continuation of it. This girl was more talented than he had given her credit for.

The night of the concert rolled around. It was his first major performance with Kitty Section, and he was nervous. The few shows that they had done showed Adrien that girls were just as superficial about musicians as they were about models, and he didn't like the eyes that looked at him like he was a commodity, although he should probably be used to it by now.

It was in the middle of their first song that he noticed her. A pretty girl in the third row, almost directly in front of him. She had hair so black that it shone blue, and a smile that lit up the whole venue. She looked like she was having fun, and her eyes kept drifting back to him. She didn't look at him in a proprietary way; her gaze was more curious than anything else. His eyes, in turn, kept returning to her. She was carefree and the way that she danced showcased her joy with life. Adrien caught her singing along at several different points, and fought a smile, knowing she was a fan of their band.

After their set, Adrien separated from the group to talk to Plagg, sharing his excitement, and gushing a little bit about the girl he had seen in the audience. He was still on the high as he walked into the holding room, where his bandmates were, when his world came crashing down. The girl, the one he had fallen a little in love with the first time their eyes met, was there, hands on Luka's chest, practically sticking her head under the chestpiece of his costume. The spurt of jealousy came out of the blue, and he growled at her. "Just couldn't wait to put your hands all over a celebrity, could you? Any one was good enough."

The girl jumped back, a blush crossing her face, making her look even more beautiful, and Adrien was cursing himself internally. Her eyes looked him up and down, and then dismissed him, as she turned back to Luka, and started talking about ways to improve the functionality of their costumes. Then it hit him… this was their designer. She really was talented. He started studying her dress, wondering if she had made it. Once she had finished taking care of his bandmate's costumes, she turned to him, fire blazing in her bluebell eyes.

She opened her mouth, and he flinched back in anticipation of his well deserved telling off, but what he heard instead left him stunned. "Your bell… is that a zipper? These seams are fantastic! Leather is so hard to sew. I was noticing earlier that you have pockets, too! That's just amazing! Whomever made this, really knows their craft!"

He was thrilled at the compliment to his friend, but completely taken aback by her enthusiasm. Most designers he'd met were quick to trash other people's creations. Her cheer when he expected disdain left him a little flustered. "A f-f-friend of mine who is in the f-f-fashion industry." He rushed to add, "I assume you are the one who m-m-made the costumes for the others? They are f-f-fabulous."

He thought her smile had lit up the venue before, but up close, and under a direct complement she took his breath away. In that moment he truly believed that he would do anything to make her smile like that again. He snapped to attention, when he realized that she was speaking once again, her voice wrapping around him, making him think of sunny days and picnics.

"Thank you Monsieur Noir. I hope to be a designer one day, and making these costumes for my friends, to get them noticed in that competition that XY held, was so much fun!"

Rose mentioned that Marinette was in their class at school, and that she had, indeed, made the dress she was wearing. As more students from Marinette's class entered, Chat found himself staring at her from the sidelines. She was free with her smiles, and friendly with everyone. He was afraid to approach her, she was just too perfect.

At one point Luka pulled Chat aside and asked him point black what was going on with him and Marinette. Chat shook his head, and denied anything was going on, in fact he'd barely spoken to her. At that, Luka smirked and told him that he would fix that.

Before Chat could object, or even really grasp what was happening, Luka had grabbed his elbow and steered him towards the group that Marinette was a part of. He was introduced to everyone, including Alya who ran a music blog. She started asking him a ton of questions about his background, all of which he refused to answer, or gave only vague answers, as he desperately strained to hear what Luka was saying to Marinette.

When Marinette rejoined the group, Luka hovering at her shoulder, her eyes were sparkling. "We should celebrate! Who wants to go for ice cream tomorrow?"

Chat nodded eagerly, noticing the subtle shake of his head that Luka was offering to the others in the group. Marinette was oblivious to Luka's actions, and her smile dimmed a little as each of her friends offered an excuse as to why they couldn't make it. Luka dropped a hand on the girl's shoulder, making her look up at him. "Looks like it is just going to be you and Chat this time, but we will all have to get together soon." Marinette's smile turned radiant again as she turned back to him. "It's a date! I'll see you tomorrow at 11am."

Feeling the blush steal over his face, he knew that his heart already belonged to her. Conversation continued on around him, but he heard none of it, instead, watching Marinette, smiling and chatting, the butterflies in his stomach kicking up everytime she laughed, a happy giggle that drew him in time and again.

It was time to leave much sooner than Adrien was ready for, and he was ecstatic, walking home in the crisp breeze. He had wanted to walk Marinette home, but she had left with the music blogger, who was spending the night at her house. He wondered, on his walk, what it would be like to have friends like that. People his own age who he could go and visit, who he could talk to about anything (he'd overheard them debating the best macaron flavor), who cared about him as a person, not just how he looked, or how much money his family had.

His father was currently out of town, and his bodyguard was much more lenient with him, never reporting back to his father, as long as he was with someone trustworth, like Alexandre Plagg. When Adrien entered the mansion grounds and switched out of his Chat Noir clothes, he texted Plagg about meeting Marinette for ice cream tomorrow. His friend texted him back excited, and told Adrien that he would swing by around 10 to give him time to get ready. As Adrien lay down that night, all he dreamed about was Marinette.


	3. Coming together

The next morning he was awake with the sun, truly excited to be meeting up with Marinette. He started thinking of ways that he could court her, to get her to fall in love with him as much as he was with her. By the time Plagg arrived, he was a bundle of nerves. They walked out together, stopping in a secluded spot for Adrien to become Chat Noir.

Once he was dressed in leather, Chat took his leave from Plagg, and nervously headed towards the park where he said that he would meet Marinette. When he spotted her, he was sure she could hear his heart beating out of his chest. The way the sunlight shone on her hair, it glowed almost blue, and her eyes sparkled. The smile she gave when she saw him had his heart stopping, only to restart at twice its normal speed as she got closer.

Completely oblivious to his cardiac difficulties, Marinette threw her arms around him in a quick hug. When she pulled back she saw that every part of him that she could see was bright red. She laughed at him without malice, tucking her arm through his, and suggesting they go in search of some ice cream. The sound he made in response was unintelligible, but he smiled at her like she was his entire universe.

It was Marinette's turn to blush. She couldn't meet his eyes, but valiantly tried for conversation, her free right hand nervously smoothing the skirt of her pink polka-dotted sundress. Curious as to what would cause someone to run around wearing a catsuit, she asked him.

He looked down at the ground and stopped walking, the blush that had finally receded as he became used to the feel of her hand on his arm, returned in full force. This time his cheeks burned with shame rather than embarrassment. He led her to a secluded bench, where he encouraged her to sit. He sat next to her, close enough that they could talk softly, but with enough space that they were not touching. Drawing a deep breath, he started his story.

"I'm not allowed to leave the house, unless under specific instructions from my father. I'm either at home or at w-work. There is no in between. I have tutors that come to the house for my school. Until I started sneaking out as Chat Noir, I had one friend, and I think he works for my father. He pitied me, so he did his best to sneak me out whenever he could. At first it was just to museums and other educational places, but as Father put more trust in my friend, he oversaw our outings less and less, and my friend was able to take me to festivals and other activities. I tried to go out in a hoodie and a mask, but people thought I was some kind of criminal. Alexandre, he's my friend, made me this costume. Now people think I'm eccentric, but nobody is actually afraid of me. I'd never had a friend my own age until I joined Kitty Section. I mean, I'd met people at my age at work, but they were more acquaintances, and too afraid of my father to really talk to me." He sighed, miserably.

Marinette reached over the distance he had left between them, placing her hand comfortingly on his arm. He looked down at the contact, and then back up to meet her eyes, those beautiful blue orbs, that held so much compassion. Unsure of what else to say, Marinette squeezed his forearm and smiled softly. "I'll be your friend. I mean, I know I just met you and everything, and we kinda got off on the wrong foot, but you seem like a nice guy. So, let's be friends. My parents own the Tom and Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie. Anytime you can get away, come on over. You are always welcome. How are you at video games?"

At that, he grinned. "I'm the best!"

Marinette stood and held out her hand to him, pulling him to his feet with a gentle tug. "Come on then. Let's go and find that ice cream, and then I'll show you who is the best at video games."

Laughing, truly laughing for the first time since he'd met her, he tightened his grip on her hand, interlacing their fingers. "Princess, you are on."

She glanced at their interlaced fingers, surprised, but made no move to pull away. The slight blush on her cheeks said that she didn't mind holding his hand. "Well. Let's go find that ice cream shall we? I hear Andre is on the Pont des Arts, and he is supposed to have the best ice cream in the city."

As they enjoyed their ice cream (peach and mint for her, blackberry and blueberry for him) they talked about themselves, getting to know each other. They had quite a bit in common, but they were also polar opposites in many ways, she the yin to his yang. They laughed and talked all the way back to Marinette's house, forgetting the awkwardness that had been there barely an hour before.

The bell over the door rang as they entered the empty shop, and Chat froze as a giant of a man approached him. The mountain of a man rumbled out a hello, before crushing the boy in a hug. Releasing the stunned young man, he lifted his daughter and spun her around. "Marinette! You brought us a young man!" His face turned serious for a minute. "A young man in a cat costume. And who are you?"

Adrien swallowed hard. "I'm Ch-chat Noir."

"Tom Dupain. Please call me Tom. Sabine! Come out here! Marinette's brought a young man home with her!" At his declaration, Marinette blushed scarlet to the roots of her hair. "Papa!"

A short, smiling woman entered, looking even more petite standing next to her husband. "Hello dear. I'm Sabine Cheng. Please call me Sabine. Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"

Marinette composed herself and answered before Adrien could figure out what was going on. "Not at the moment Maman. We just had ice cream. Maybe in a little while. I'm going to go kick his butt at Ultimate Mecha Strike IV." Her mother laughed as Marinette kissed her cheek and beckoned a somewhat shell shocked Adrien to follow her up the stairs. With a shy wave at her parents, he followed her up to her room.

They played several games of UMS. He lost all of them, badly, but Marinette's victory dance was so adorable, he couldn't bring himself to care. An hour or so into their gaming, Marinette's dad had brought them up a snack. Marinette had thanked him without even looking away from the game, but Chat had, which had led to a very swift victory on her part. Groaning in mock despair, he had allowed himself to be consoled with a croissant that her father had brought up. His little moan of pleasure at the first bite led to his confession that he wasn't often allowed sweets, and Marinette promised him as many sweets as he wanted whenever he came by to visit.

The day wore on, and Chat admitted that he probably should head home soon. Marinette walked him downstairs, and pushed up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, just as he turned towards her. Their lips met, and neither could contain the little shiver of pleasure that tickled its way down their spines. It was only moments, but felt like an eternity later that the pair broke apart, eyes wide, and breath coming in short gasps.

With a promise that he would be back to see her as soon as he could, Chat Noir, disappeared into the night, full of wonder, and stories to tell his friend, Alexander Plagg.

Over the next several weeks, Chat visited Marinette whenever he could. There was quite a bit of hand holding and snuggling, and several sweetly stolen kisses. The pair talked about anything and everything, Chat longing to know what life was like in the real world, and Marinette, giggling, explained things like public toilets and homework.

Marinette was happier than she had ever been. She loved Chat Noir with her whole heart, a heart that broke a little whenever he would ask her about something that seemed so commonplace to her, whether it was a dessert or a game. She'd had to explain rock, paper, scissors to him, when they couldn't decide on a movie to watch, they'd ended up never putting the movie on, instead playing the game for the next hour. She loved the wonder in his eyes as he experienced things for the first time, and she saw the world made new, as she saw things with him, the joy shared.

Her heart broke a little with every new thing she realized he hadn't experienced, and she felt anger towards parents who never allowed him to experience the world. He took lessons, Chinese, piano and fencing, all with private tutors that came to his house, and he had a tutor for all things academic. He rarely was allowed to interact with people his own age, and when he did, it was people his parents approved of, kids who had similar upbringing to himself, and had equally limited access to the outside world. One was a newer acquaintance, whom his fencing master had paired him against as a challenge, both parties being equally young and talented. The other he had been almost entirely cut off from, since she started attending school a few years earlier, and was no longer considered a good influence on him.

He said that his mother had passed away a few years ago, and when that happened, his father, who had never been the most doting of parents, had completely withdrawn into himself, leaving Chat completely alone, except for lessons. He completely and intentionally didn't mention any of the modeling shoots that he did, lest he give away his identity, but he didn't have much interaction there, nobody wanting to get too friendly with the pampered son of the designer, who was always given special treatment.

Marinette's parents, too, seemed to understand how lonely the boy was, and he was always made to feel welcome whenever he was able to show up. He was invited to family dinners, and seemed to blossom under the parental affection that Tom and Sabine offered him without hesitation. While they never pressured him to reveal himself, they did mention to Marinette that she might, one day, want to know, just in case of potential repercussions.

Between the two, their relationship was progressing. Chat was still rehearsing, a bit sporadically, with Kitty Section, and Marinette attended many of their rehearsals, as well, so Chat walked her home afterwards. There was much speculation, and more than a few friendly wagers on the relationship between the young designer and their part-time keyboardist, but as neither party ever confirmed or denied that there was anything more than a budding friendship between them, no money exchanged hands.

The months passed, and Chat Noir became more comfortable in his dual life, more comfortable with the Dupain-Chengs and very comfortable with Marinette. One of his favorite pastimes was baking with her after the bakery was closed. Once she'd learned that he had very little idea where food even came from, Marinette took it upon herself to teach him how to cook. He was an absolute disaster in the kitchen to start with, but when he realized it was just like chemistry, he was a quick study and really started to enjoy himself.

Soon, Chat and Marinette were cooking family dinners for her parents, always being met with enthusiastic praise, or gentle criticism, always with a suggestion as to what could be improved. Chat loved receiving the suggestions, and strove to make something that the people he believed to be the best cooks in Paris would be proud to serve.

The relationship between the two teens progressed, much in the way of typical teen relationships, and shy, sweet kisses turned more passionate, and hands did more than hold each other. Chat, who often removed his gloves to cook, eat and game, left them off when he spent time alone with Marinette, the temptation to feel her skin against the pads of his fingers overriding the thought that his identity might be revealed by his hands.

Marinette enjoyed the time she got to spend with her boyfriend. It was true that she couldn't tell anyone that she had a boyfriend, but she loved spending time with him. The cooking classes she gave him were fun, and he still looked around furtively any time he reached for a sugar or dairy laden treat. He'd filled out in the time that he'd been spending with them. Not that he'd gained an ounce of fat, but he had shot up a few inches, and his muscles were much more defined.

Early in their relationship, Chat had gone out and bought a mobile phone, something that his father had refused to get him, not that he actually had anyone to call, and the pair texted on a regular basis. When Chat had messaged Marinette in a panic saying that he couldn't come over, because he couldn't get his Chat costume zipped up, Marinette had pointed out that they wouldn't exactly be out in public and he'd come over in black jeans and a black hoodie, mask still firmly in place.

Adrien talked with Plagg about the possibility of a new costume, considering the rate he was growing, they decided it was best to hold off for a little while, until he plateaued a bit. Plagg was thrilled that Adrien was getting out, and was always there to offer suggestions and advice, and play the role of an older brother, and was as excited as Adrien every time he learned something new.

Tom and Sabine trusted their daughter, and while they didn't truly understand why she would spend so much time with a young man whose face she'd never seen, they understood young love, and allowed the pair in her room, unchaperoned.

On one such evening, the pair were snuggled up, watching a movie in a blanket fort, another new experience for Chat, Marinette spending more time watching Chat than watching the movie, enjoying his reactions. She was playing with his hair, tracing his real ears (he no longer wore the cat ones when he visited her), and the curve of his chin. He turned to look at her, his green eyes sparkling, a smile curving his lips upwards.

As Marinette traced the edge of his mask, her smile slipped a little. Noticing, Chat asked her what was wrong. She shook her head, and denied it, but he pressed. "Chat, you know I love you. We've been together for almost a year now, and I've loved every moment of it, but I don't understand why I can't see your face. I understand that you can't tell me your name. I know you've said your father can't know, but I am really struggling with all this dishonesty."

This was something that Adrien had been wrestling with for a few months now. He truly loved Marinette, he had from the first moment he saw her, and that feeling had only grown in the time that he spent with her. He knew that he could trust her, and so he reached up to pull away his mask. As his fingers touched it, Marinette covered his hand with hers. "I don't want to guilt you into anything."

Chat smiled at her. "You're not. It's something that I've been thinking about for a while now. I want you to know my name, to know who I am. I think everything else will make sense if you do."

He squeezed her hand, then let it go in order to reach up for the mask. Slowly, he slid it up and over his head. His eyes were on the mask clenched in his fingers, but when he heard her gasp, he looked up. Her eyes were darting between his face and her bulletin board, that contained a variety of fashion photos taken from magazines, many of which were his.

Her hand reached out to cup his cheek, as her thumb traced his cheekbone. "Adrien." Marinette breathed his name, and leaned forward, and placed a whisper soft kiss on his lips. Before he even had a chance to react, she pulled back and met his eyes. "Thank you for trusting me. I DO understand. And Chat? Um, Adrien? This changes nothing. I still love you."

This time their kiss lasted longer, and when they pulled apart, they were both smiling, hearts lighter.


End file.
